17 Killer Anime Like 'Naruto' to Watch When You Need a New Shonen

As arguably the most recognizable anime in existence, Dragon Ball is required viewing for anyone that considers themselves a fan of the medium. The original show from the 80s is full of charm and has all the amazing textural qualities of older animation. I’m sure you all know who Goku is, so I won’t go into that; but Dragon Ball is chock full of other interesting characters like Piccolo, who is the main antagonist of the original series. There’s no shortage of Dragon Ball media to watch either, as some variation of the show has been on air from 1986 to the current day.

Famously, many of the characters from Dragon Ball often rank as some of the most powerful anime characters of all time.

Bleach is guaranteed to scratch the same itch if you love the depth of Naruto’s power system, full of shinobi with a wide variety of talents and abilities. In Bleach, each person’s characteristic sword carries a special ability, with a specific "Bankai" (the final and upgraded form). Along with the amazing power system, Bleach provides some of the coolest fights and compelling storylines in any anime. Ichigo, the main character, begins as a typical student when he is suddenly whisked into the world of "Shinigami," which are effectively grim reapers. Once there, he must defend both the spirit world and the human world from hollows, which are deceased human souls that lose their hearts to despair or regret.

What better place to get more of your Naruto fix than to watch the show about his son, Boruto? The show raises interesting conversations in contrast to Naruto, considering that the characters now live in a completely different time. Rather than to be orphaned, what does it mean to be the son of a "Hokage?" Boruto also provides insight into the new and improved leaf village, with updated technology and wild fights. The series was originally drawn by Kishimoto’s own assistant, so the lifeblood of the original really imbues itself into this sequel. The show definitely has some rough spots, don’t get me wrong, but is well worth it if you are a fan of the original.

Soul Eater is easily one of my favorite anime of all time, and I feel like it’s criminally underrated in modern anime conversations. I think in large part this is because it aired in 2008, and isn’t as big as shows like Naruto for example. However, I think Soul Eater has one of the coolest backgrounds of any show, revolving around students at the "Death Weapon Meister Academy." Soul Eater follows various teams of "Weapon Meisters," who work in conjunction with "Weapons" capable of shapeshifting into people. Jam-packed with both emotion and over-the-top antics, I can guarantee that anyone who watches Soul Eater is bound to fall in love.

If loudmouth protagonists like Naruto are up your lane, then Black Clover is without a doubt the show for you. Fair warning - some of the voice acting at the beginning of the show is so grating, I almost stopped watching. However, pushing through those first few episodes is well worth it once the showrunners ironed out a few kinks. The power scaling is akin to Naruto, albeit at a highly increased pace. Black clover follows a similar trope to Naruto though, as both shows' protagonists consist of a competitive pair of boys. Asta’s a loudmouthed blonde kid, while Yuno is a too-cool-for-you all-powerful type (sound familiar?).

By reading up about Sword Art Online, you’re bound to find reviews about its shoddy writing and weird timeline issues on occasion. But it's an undeniable fact that the show has an incredible draw to it. For many, SAO was their introduction to anime and carries a special place in our hearts. The premise is amazing and increasingly relevant with VR gaming becoming more popular every year. In SAO, characters find themselves stuck inside a virtual reality game suddenly, realizing that if they die in the game, they die in real life. SAO is definitely worth checking out if you’re looking for something with a tinge of eerie suspense.

There’s no other way to slice it, simply put One Piece is the most iconic anime of all time. It’s certainly the longest-running, at over 1,000 episodes, and the show has every reason to be this long. It’s jam-packed with humor, amazing story arcs, and emotion all bundled into a dazzling piracy package. Instead of the coveted Hokage position in Naruto, Monkey D. Luffy’s mission is to find the prized "One Piece," ultimately crowning him as the greatest pirate of all time. If the sheer length of the show is daunting, find comfort in the fact that each arc is a very defined storyline, allowing a viewer to jump in and out as they please with every arc.

Luffy is also, in our opinion, the greatest anime main character of all time.

Fairy Tail is another anime that I remember fondly from my youth, but doesn’t seem to be that popular anymore. It’s an amazingly fun show, showcasing a land of witchcraft and wizardry in contrast to Naruto’s ninja world. As part of the "Fairy Tail" wizard’s guild, the main protagonist Natsu Dragneel travels the land of "Fiore" in search of his adoptive father, the dragon Igneel. Alongside his companion Lucy and an anthropomorphic cat named Happy, Natsu embarks on a series of exploits, ranging from taking care of dark magic guilds to defeating demons created by Zeref, a wizard cursed with immortality and immense powers.

If what draws you to Naruto is its intense hand-to-hand combat scenes, then Baki will be right up your alley. Baki the Grappler follows its eponymous character, Baki Hanma, as he trains to become the best martial artist in the world. To make matters more interesting, his primary opponent is Yujiro Hanma, a renowned warrior and also Baki’s father. After Yujiro kills a close friend of Baki’s, he vows to destroy his father and embarks on a worldwide training tour. Baki has been around for a while, so there are a few different pieces of media you have the option of watching. There’s the original 24-episode run from the early 2000s, but odds are people are more likely familiar with the 2018 Netflix adaptation, which now has three seasons.

Hunter x Hunter will feel familiar to any fan of Naruto, especially considering the fact that Kishimoto and Togashi are close friends. Hunter x Hunter came first, which makes it hilarious when you’ve seen both shows and there are distinct similarities between several characters and themes. So similar are they in fact, that it’s essentially common knowledge that Kishimoto ripped off ideas from Hunter x Hunter. In any case, if the creator of Naruto of all things is copying this show you should be able to get an idea of its quality. 

If you’re a fan of Naruto thanks to its occasional humorous elements, then Gintama is exactly the show for you. This might genuinely be one of the funniest anime I’ve watched, and that’s coming from an American who doesn’t understand the intricate wordplay and idioms of Japanese humor. Set in an alternate reality during the late Edo period of Japan where humanity has been attacked by aliens known as "Amanto." Earth’s samurai fight to protect against the invasion, however, the show focuses on Gintoki Sakata, a rather eccentric character who performs odd jobs for cash. 

Created by the infamous ONE, who also wrote and illustrated Mob Psycho 100, One Punch Man asks the all-important question: What if the protagonist was actually just invincible? It’s a hilarious framing to base a show on because knowing the main character will win allows for all sorts of humorous scenarios to take place. In a sense, the limiting factors of the show have spurred its most iconic moments. One Punch Man follows Saitama, a regular guy who gains insane superhuman powers after doing 100 push-ups, 100 sit-ups, 100 squats, and a 10km run every day.

Aside from being a delight to watch, One Punch Man features some of the most exciting fight scenes in the whole genre.

If Gintama’s Edo period setting isn’t enough history for you, Inuyasha is set during the Sengoku period a few hundred years before. In modern-day Tokyo, 15-year-old Kagome Higurashi falls into a well at her family's shrine, transporting herself to some time during the Sengoku period. Once there, she befriends a half-dog half-demon character named Inuyasha. Unbeknownst to her, Kagome is the host of a sacred jewel that ultimately shatters into several tiny pieces. In order to restore balance to the world, Inuyasha and Kagome seek to restore the jewel before the evil half-demon Naraku gets there first. 

Okay, I’ll admit Tokyo Ghoul doesn’t share a ton of similarities with Naruto outside of being a shonen. It’s a short 12-episode series, but don’t let that stop you from watching because each episode is absolutely mental. Tokyo Ghoul is set in, you guessed it, Tokyo. However, in this world, ghouls (similar to vampires) live in secrecy amongst humans, feeding off of them to survive. The story follows Ken Kaneki, whose life is flipped upside down when a date with a girl named Rize Kamishiro goes south after she turns out to be a ghoul and tries to eat him. Ken wakes up in a hospital, realizing he’s undergone surgery and has had some of Rize’s organs implanted into him, making him a half-ghoul. In the ensuing drama, Ken tries to discover himself while simultaneously hiding his new ghoul identity from his closest human friends.

I’ve always been a sucker for anime with cool power systems, simply because I enjoy seeing the creative applications of various abilities that showrunners and creators can come up with. Naruto has bar none some of the best power applications in any show ever (I still think about Naruto vs. Sasuke). That being said, My Hero Academia has some really cool abilities to showcase and incorporates them in a unique way. Each character’s superpower, or “quirk”, makes sense with their character and is used in a manner that aligns itself with their personalities. Once big fights start and people start chaining their various powers together you get a recipe for some awesome combat scenes. 

Attack on Titan is without a doubt a modern-day classic. Created by Hajime Isayama, Attack on Titan is set in a world where humanity has experienced a calamity event resulting in all of mankind living within cities protected by three enormous walls. These walls, dubbed "Maria," "Rose," and "Sina," protect the cities’ inhabitants from giant flesh-eating monsters. Attack on Titan’s story is immense and incredibly well executed, with each succeeding season of the show revealing world-breaking details that expand the universe in incredible ways. The characters are extremely well written, each with complex motives that transcend simple good versus bad. If you haven’t tuned in to Attack on Titan thus far, you have to.

Jujutsu Kaisen is both explicitly and implicitly influenced by Naruto, invoking similar imagery and aesthetics for a lot of the primary characters. But in many ways, it's like an ultra dose of the iconic shonen, with updated visuals and more of a dark narrative. It's an anime like Naruto for the modern era.